Theyâre at the lighthouse door. Looks like Barber can pick padlocks. Heâs got the door open. No one goes in there, not even Vern. Only the transport officer to service the light. Guess Barber must think if I did get to the radio no one would find him in there.
I get down the ladder fast. And into the kitchen. Vernâs still out. Then I check on the radio. Itâs ten to twelve, but thereâs no way I can try it again. The little red light is off. Little bits of the receiver are broken, sticking out at strange angles. Always that radio flashed or murmured, like the purring of a cat. I push the button just to check. No crackle, no murmur. Nothing. Weâre on our own.
22
Since I canât do any more with the radio, I decide I better not leave Mei by herself with that maniac any longer. There must be something I can do. Iâm as wet as a dog thatâs fallen into the surf. Vernâs still asleep. I check him out, put him on his side and get a blanket. Went once with Dev to a volunteer Sea Rescue night. Some ambulance guys were showing us all this stuff. Just hope Vernâs okay. Itâs hard not seeing Olsen lift his tail. Even though he was an old dog, he still had some go in him. Weird how itâs not until itâs stopped that Iâve noticed. The radio too.
I pull on one of Vernâs coats. At least Mei and I have our own jeans and sweaters, dried by Vernâs heater. Not dry any more. Just before I tug the door open I give it all one more thought. What can I do? But I donât think for long. For one thing, I wonât know until I get there, and besides, planning ahead isnât one of my strong points unless Iâm fishing. When youâre fishing everything goes fine if you use the right bait and lure. Somehow now I have to do the same.
The door to the lighthouse isnât locked from the inside. Now why hasnât he done that? Thinks no one will know anyway? I would have locked it if it was me in there. Iâm trying not to make a noise or huff too much as I go up the stairs. I donât want him to know Iâm coming, nor do I want to freak Mei out. But trying to hold my breath to listen makes me noisier.
I neednât have bothered being quiet â Barberâs sitting there at the top, waiting for me. As I come round the last curve I see him. Heâs got a torch going. Meiâs in a tight little ball as far away on the next step as she can manage, her head down on her knees and her arms wrapped round them like sheâs hanging onto a tower in the wind.
Barber looks up and grins. In that instant, I wonder if Iâve imagined it all. He looks just like one of the Year 12 guys on the high school bus. Then the image shatters, as he opens his mouth.
âThought youâd show up. Took ya time.â He looks real peeved about that, and I start getting worried. Iâve seen a cat play with a lizard. Barber has the same look in his eye, the knife held loosely in his hand. So the door was left open for me. I have to keep him here, so he doesnât go down and lock it. Itâs twenty-five metres down. Will he be bothered? Then he starts talking about the radio. Maybe itâs the sound of my silence, for he stands up suddenly. Thereâs a slight clang.
âFrigginâ brat. You called, didnât ya?â Heâs coming for me. Do I tell him it didnât work? He wonât believe me, not after losing the tinnie. Run? But then heâll grab Mei again, make me come back. I try something else.
âCareful,â I say. âThereâs a ghost in here.â Surely after all that clanging for a hundred and fifty years and no one getting hurt, the ghost wonât start hurting people now. Meiâs watching me, and Iâm trying to look sorry at her, so sheâll know Iâm doing it for us. Itâs scaring her, I can tell, but if I can spook Barber it might make him forget about the door.
âGhost, what
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